The moment I saw the synopsis of The Couple, I knew in my bones that Helly Acton wrote this book for me. See, I love books that turn our social norms upside down and examine how life could be instead. Also, I basically spent my twenties single, which drew a lot of pity from friends. They made unsolicited comments, “Are you sure you don’t want to get married?” or “I’m happy to introduce you to someone!”
BURN by Patrick Ness
When I first started out reading Burn, I was intrigued. Historical fiction isn’t all too common in young adult publishing compared to contemporary fiction, fantasy and science fiction. History and fantasy crossing paths? Even less so. But Patrick Ness has an excellent track record of meshing various genres and even defying them, so I expected this one to be a hit as well. It wasn’t but I was still glad that he brought his signature postmodern outlook with a touch of whimsy.
MARIAM SHARMA HITS THE ROAD by Sheba Karim
I’m not particularly fond of books in which the entire plot revolves around travelling from point A to point B. Yet, I tend to be drawn to road trip novels. I suppose this stems in part from the fact that I suffer from motion sickness. Actual road trips therefore aren’t exactly enjoyable. And so, reading is a way for me to experience these vicariously. On that front, Mariam Sharma Hits the Road absolutely delivered. I felt right at home with this trio.
SEVEN WAYS WE LIE by Riley Redgate
Seven Ways We Lie was very ambitious. With seven main characters a lot could go wrong: unresolved plot lines, not enough depth, loss of focus and characters that might be too similar. I’m glad to say that Seven Ways We Lie didn’t suffer from any of these shortcomings. In fact, the choice to integrate so many characters’ perspectives worked!
THOSE GIRLS by Lauren Saft
There are so many reasons to hate Those Girls. Yet when I step away from the content and simply think about the structure of Those Girls as a novel, it actually holds up pretty well. This is why I think Lauren Saft has what it takes to become a successful author but I don’t have it in me to like this book much.
